Manchester City have been banned from UEFA club competitions for the next two years and fined 30 Million Euros following a hearing held on January 22, 2020.
City were found to have ‘committed serious breaches of the UEFA Club Licensing and Financial Fair Play Regulations’.
City were also found to have failed to co-operate in the investigation of the case following the decision made by the independent Adjudicatory Chamber of the Club Financial Control Body (CFCB).
In a statement put out in response to the news City were ”disappointed but not surprised” by today’s announcement by the UEFA Adjudicatory Chamber.
The statement continued: “The Club has always anticipated the ultimate need to seek out an independent body and process to impartially consider the comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence in support of its position.
”In December 2018, the UEFA Chief Investigator publicly previewed the outcome and sanction he intended to be delivered to Manchester City, before any investigation had even begun.
”The subsequent flawed and consistently leaked UEFA process he oversaw has meant that there was little doubt in the result that he would deliver.
“The Club has formally complained to the UEFA Disciplinary body, a complaint which was validated by a CAS ruling.
”Simply put, this is a case initiated by UEFA, prosecuted by UEFA and judged by UEFA.
“With this prejudicial process now over, the Club will pursue an impartial judgment as quickly as possible and will therefore, in the first instance, commence proceedings with the Court of Arbitration for Sport at the earliest opportunity.”
Could Sheffield United now play in the Champions League? Could Manchester United qualify for the Champions League?
Manchester City will appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport meaning that any decision is yet to be confirmed but in theory the Premier League may have to nominate the fifth place finishers this season, currently Sheffield United, to enter next season’s competition if City were to clinch a top four finish this term but were banned from UEFA competition.
If City won the Carabao Cup or FA Cup, the resulting Europa League place would normally go back to the next best placed teams in the league meaning that rivals Manchester United – currently in eighth place – would qualify for the Europa League.
The Reds would go straight into the top seeds pot of the Champions League instead if they won this season’s Europa League though while fifth place gives Ole Gunnar Solksjaer’s men a fighting chance of a seat back back at Europe’s top table.
But if Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham side finished sixth and won the Champions League this season alongside a Europa League win for Manchester United, the Blades would be deprived of a shock place in the Champions League.
This is because each country can only have a maximum of five teams in the competition with – for the sake of argument – Liverpool, Leicester City, and Chelsea capturing the other three places due to final league placing.